Chapter Six
In a way, Sam was grateful that on the day Phil Hunter returned to Sun Hill she was safely tucked away in court giving evidence in a GBH trial. It gave her time to work in peace – albeit in a corridor with her bag acting as a makeshift clipboard – and time to think as well. It had certainly been a strange few weeks and she was looking forward to the week in the sun booked for her and Abigail to enjoy in the not-too-distant future.
During her darker moments Sam couldn't help but dwell on the lie she had to tell her daughter. At the time it had felt like the ultimate betrayal, the final lie in a series that had fractured her relationship with Abi irreparably. That's why when Sheelagh had arrived in the hospital car park to check on her she'd been almost unresponsive. She'd wavered, wanted to tell her the truth, but she couldn't imagine how she'd react. They were different kinds of people, vastly different. Sheelagh was open, one of those people who looked beyond themselves, a hell of a lot more than Sam had ever been able to do. If Sheelagh had found herself in that position with Glenn she would've handled it differently, no doubt handled it better. But Sam had found herself locked in, so why not compound it with another lie to Abi? Perhaps she could've explained it to Sheelagh in blocks – she hadn't known who Glenn was, she kept the news of her pregnancy to herself, she refused to tell Abi anything about her father for years then, finally, she told her she was the product of a one-night stand. Individually, they were sensible choices but cumulatively? She couldn't imagine Sheelagh getting herself embroiled in that mess. She'd meant what she said – she fully intended to tell her the truth about Glenn one day, but she needed to work her way up to it. If she could do it in a controlled manner, at a suitable opening, she hoped she could make Sheelagh understand her actions in a way that didn't portray her as the monster she felt like at times.
After all, what Sam liked about their friendship was how Sheelagh didn't seem to judge her. Even the questions about Pat Kitson had been asked with interest instead of accusation, and that had prompted Sam to respond more honestly than she would've done with anybody else. Sheelagh seemed to bring that out in her, even if she wasn't quite sure why. Without being asked, Sheelagh sought her out when she needed an ear, despite the fact that Sam would rarely go looking for one. There was someone listening out for her in the station, someone to tell her that the relief were gossiping to MIT about Abi's relationship with Matt instead of waiting for the shoe to drop. When Abi had taken her overdose there was no one else she would've wanted to be there with her daughter, no one else who would've treated her with such care. Sam really wasn't sure what she'd done to deserve Sheelagh's friendship, but she didn't want to lose it.
In return, she tried to reciprocate. Hearing that Sheelagh had almost been strangled to death in a crack house had triggered a heartfelt anxious reaction, one she rarely felt with the officers under her command, let alone those who weren't. Having that level of sincere affection for someone other than Abi startled her a bit, but she was learning to run with it. She enjoyed their chats more than she could – or wanted to – articulate and, as long as that remained the case, she was open to believing she was a better copper because of Sheelagh's friendship.
When she returned to the station after her day in court it was mainly to drop off some paperwork for Jack to scrutinise first thing. She went in through the yard, deliberately avoiding the front office where they were usually urgent messages that compelled her to stay later than she intended. However, as she rounded a corner downstairs, she stopped moving all of a sudden.
Ahead of her, Sheelagh was talking to Des. Though Sam couldn't hear what they were saying, they certainly looked close. She was reminded of that snippy remark Matt had made about the two of them a few weeks ago, implying there was something going on between them. That was patently ridiculous. Sheelagh was happily married, certainly not about to sacrifice that for a man like Des Taviner. But, from the way he was looking at her, it was obvious that Des wanted more than friendship from her. Did Sheelagh realise it? Sam watched a moment more then backed out of sight. Yeah, if someone looked at you like that then it was pretty clear what was going through their head.
Slightly unsettled, she deposited the files in Jack's office then escaped the station without acquiring anymore work for a change. By the next morning she'd managed to successfully minimise the scene in her mind. Really, it was none of her business. If Sheelagh had brought this to her and discussed it then it'd be a different matter and she'd gladly offer advice. However, Sheelagh hadn't. In itself Sam suspected that should ring alarm bells, because why wouldn't Sheelagh mention it if it was nothing? Unless, of course, Sheelagh didn't think this relationship was a two-way thing. Perhaps she hadn't brought it up in case she thought it'd be too much of an imposition. With anyone else it probably would be, but Sam didn't want Sheelagh to think she fell into that category. Even so, she hadn't the foggiest how she could make that evident without actually spelling it out. She had a vision of that conversation rotating around her head as she walked up to CID and it ended with Sheelagh trying patiently not to smile at her as she made a fool of herself.
Instead of worrying about that, however, she tried to focus on her more pressing professional problem. After depositing her things in her office she went around the desks in CID, ostensibly to check on everybody, but really to catch sight of what Phil was up to. He was walking back to his desk with a handful of videos.
'What's this?' she asked, pursuing him. 'Something juicy?'
'City lawyer, got a kicking outside some bar last night,' he answered.
'Perfect,' she said. 'After that Ron Gregory mess you need results, Phil. Sort a few more like this and you'll soon be back in favour.'
Perhaps that was overly optimistic, she realised, watching him jam the tape into the machine. It would take a hell of a lot for him ever to get into her good graces, if that was even possible. She simply didn't trust him. Just because Ron Gregory had been banged up, it didn't negate all the stunts he'd pulled to protect his criminal friends in his time at Sun Hill. He'd crossed the line and she wasn't about to forget that, even if Jack and Adam felt they could.
As he fiddled with the remote, Eva's head popped in between the pair of them: 'Morning all.'
'Hey, welcome back,' Sam said, smiling widely as she followed Eva over to her desk.
'Thanks, Guv,' Eva replied.
'How's Joanna?' she asked.
Eva grimaced. 'Erm, getting there.'
'She back at school yet?'
'Yeah,' said Eva, 'first day today. Don't know who was more nervous.'
Sam could understand that. 'I bet you daren't let her out of your sight,' she said.
'Yeah, I tell you what, she's not going anywhere near derelict building sites, that is for sure.'
As Eva chuckled and shook her head, Sam returned, 'I'd have gone out of my mind.'
'I still can't believe that I got her home alive,' Eva murmured. 'Convinced myself I'd never see her again.' She fell silent for a moment then physically gathered herself together and walked over to Phil's desk. 'So, what we got?' she questioned as Sam joined them.
'Check this,' Phil said.
He rewound the CCTV tape and played them footage of the bar assault which culminated in the victim being kicked in the groin. Both Sam and Eva winced.
'Very nasty,' Sam commented as she moved towards her office.
'You up for seeing this geezer?' Phil asked Eva.
Turning back, Sam said, 'Give her a chance to get her coat off.'
'No, I'm all right, Guv,' replied Eva. 'I'd rather get stuck in.'
She couldn't help but smile. 'It's good to have you back, Eva.'
Returning to her office, she felt a little lighter. Having another friendly and competent detective back on her team was more valuable than she thought it would be. She settled down at her desk and tried to deal with the mountain of paperwork that always sprouted up when she had a day off, a day in court or so much as a lunch break. Still, though she complained about it, she loved her job and with Abi finally settling down at home she was quietly confident that life was improving.
She was mildly interested to learn later that afternoon that Sheelagh's husband, Patrick, had provided a witness statement after picking up a sexual assault suspect yesterday. It piqued her interest, too, that Des was the one who'd taken the statement. She wondered how that conversation had gone, and it certainly put a new spin on that moment she'd witnessed between Sheelagh and Des last night. Even so, Patrick Murphy's statement was literally the only thing they had on the suspect and she was forced to tell June and Polly to bail him. Heading through custody after that, she was perturbed to see friction between Eva and Phil. She didn't step in, but she'd seen enough to keep her wondering throughout the day. The pair stayed out of the office for the most part and she didn't get a chance to speak to them again, though maybe that was for the best.
Before she left the station she dropped by the Sergeants' Office. Sure enough, Sheelagh was there, head bowed as she concentrated on her paperwork. Sam watched for a moment then cleared her throat.
Sheelagh smiled as she lifted her head. 'I thought you'd have gone by now.'
Sam stepped inside the office and held up her bag. 'I'm heading that way for once.'
'But you stopped here first,' Sheelagh replied.
'Magnetic pull?' she offered.
Chuckling, Sheelagh rolled her shoulders. 'That's a lie, but I'll take it. I heard Eva's back.'
'Mmm,' Sam said, sitting down. 'Almost balances out having Phil on my team. Although I don't know how she's finding it to be honest.'
'Must be a big adjustment,' answered Sheelagh. 'I take it Joanna's back at school?'
'Yeah, that's today. Better for Eva to be here than sitting at home worrying, of course,' she went on. 'But finding that line must be difficult. I just hope she hasn't come back too soon.'
Sheelagh eyed her shrewdly. 'What's happened?'
Dipping her eyes, Sam's lips twitched. 'You can read me like a book, you know that?'
'Potent weapon in the wrong hands,' retorted Sheelagh as she leaned back in her chair. 'Come on, tell me.'
'Nothing concrete,' she replied, running her finger along the edge of the desk. 'She's working with Phil and I don't think it's going too well. I warned him this morning he needed to get some results and you know what he's like. But I've got to let it play out, I suppose.'
'Right,' Sheelagh agreed. 'Eva wouldn't appreciate special treatment.'
'Right,' Sam said. 'And I wouldn't condone it.'
Their eyes met and they exchanged a smile before Sheelagh pointed out, 'This isn't you going home, is it?'
'No,' she conceded then hesitated. 'How are things with you?'
Sheelagh shifted in her seat. 'The same as ever. Why do you ask?'
'Well, it's polite every now and then,' she answered, pretending to miss Sheelagh's evident discomfort and standing. 'I'd better get home. Promised Abi we could go shopping for the holiday tonight. I think my credit card's going to take a hit.'
'When is it you go?' asked Sheelagh.
'Day after tomorrow,' she answered.
'I'll miss you around here.'
'That's a lie,' Sam said, wilfully echoing Sheelagh's earlier comment, 'but I'll take it.'
'Make sure you enjoy yourselves,' Sheelagh said.
We will.' Sam stepped towards the door and then turned back. Her instinct was to ask questions, to probe, because that was what she did. However, she swallowed it down and just said, 'Night.'
Sheelagh's shoulders relaxed. 'Night, Sam.'
Once she was in the car she gave herself time to ponder just what was bothering Sheelagh so much. Des Taviner was the obvious answer, and the fact she didn't want to discuss it was her business, in spite of Sam's rampant curiosity. She supposed that at least she'd done what she set out to do – she'd let Sheelagh know this was a two-way thing and that she was available to talk if she wanted to. More than that, she couldn't expect.
If there was a good time to take a week off then Sam didn't know when it was. Still, she'd promised Abi a holiday in the sun and she wasn't about to let her down again. She took a bag full of books and actually managed to read several while lounging by the pool and keeping an eye on Abi. It was pleasant to see her daughter chatting to boys her own age, though Sam had to make a severe effort not to interrogate the lads. Under eighteen, quite gangly, they were a marked improvement on the likes of Matt Boyden. She forced herself to remember that. The one thing she and Abi disagreed on was the fact that she refused to turn her phone off. She only answered calls from the top brass – there weren't many and they were very apologetic when they came.
A call from Gina was so unexpected that, despite Abi glaring at her from across the pool, she answered it without hesitation in the knowledge that it was going to be something important.
'Gina,' she said, 'what's up?'
'Are you sitting comfortably?' Gina said without preamble.
Automatically, she sat up straighter on the sun lounger. 'Well, I was. What's going on?'
'I wanted to give you a heads-up in case you walked back into it blindsided or somebody else calls you, Jack maybe,' Gina replied. 'I know you're friendly with Sheelagh.'
'What is it?' she questioned, standing up and shielding her eyes from the sun. 'What's wrong with Sheelagh?'
'Well, her husband came in late last night claiming he'd been assaulted and had his cab stolen –'
'Claiming?' Sam interrupted.
'Hey, hey, you're not interrogating me, you know,' Gina retorted. 'I'm doing you a favour here.'
'Sorry, sorry,' she said, moving further away from the pool and warming her feet on the sun-drenched tiles. 'Go on.'
'For the record, I believed him. He's a nice, genuine bloke from what I can tell. Well, he would be, married to Sheelagh, wouldn't he? Anyway,' continued Gina, 'around the same time Tony and Reg picked up a woman who'd been stabbed and possibly the victim of an attempted sexual assault near to where Patrick said he was assaulted on Ravens Lane. The victim got into a cab and was attacked by the driver, but she fought back against her attacker.'
'So the theory was that Patrick Murphy stabbed the woman then tried to cover himself by saying he was attacked himself and his cab was nicked?' Sam questioned.
'In a nutshell.'
'Right, so when that outlandish theory was put aside so that...' She trailed off as something occurred to her. 'Wait a second, who was nights in CID?'
'Take a guess,' said Gina.
Sam groaned. 'Debbie.'
'Bingo.'
'What happened?' Sam pressed.
'She's convinced herself that he's guilty,' answered Gina. 'The circumstantial evidence supports it and there's an old assault conviction on his record from what I understand. But I still don't think he's the type.'
'No,' Sam murmured, drumming her fingers against her temple. 'How's Sheelagh coping?'
'Holding it together, even when SOCO searched her house and she had to fend off questions from the kids.'
'I hope they were bloody careful,' Sam said. 'Right, well, I'll give Debbie a –'
'Don't do anything of the sort,' Gina cut in. 'I didn't call you to ride in like a white knight and sort this mess out. You can't do that.'
She snorted. 'Gina, watch me.'
'Listen to me, Samantha,' replied Gina firmly. 'Your friendship with Sheelagh is common knowledge around here. This isn't your investigation, you can't interfere. The DCI's back in and you trust him to deal with it, don't you?'
'That's not the point,' Sam argued. 'I'm in a position to help.'
'And I'm overjoyed that you want to,' Gina muttered, 'but I'm asking you to stay out of it. I can't order you not to call Debbie McAllister, but I'm advising against it. You could make things worse. You'd need to back Debbie as a matter of course and you couldn't do that right now.'
Finally, she sighed and massaged her neck. 'All right. I'll stay out of it for now. And Gina?' she added before her friend could hang up. 'Keep an eye on Sheelagh for me. She's tough, but she's not invincible.'
'Consider it done,' Gina said with a smile in her voice. 'Enjoy the rest of your holiday.'
Tossing the phone on top of her towel, Sam sighed. Suddenly, the sunshine seemed a little dimmer as she contemplated what was going on miles away in London. She half-wished Gina hadn't told her but, then, if she'd arrived back and seen a copy of the report on her desk then being left out of the loop would have driven her mad. Sam needed no nudge to believe that Debbie went into the investigation believing Patrick Murphy was guilty and had seen every bit of evidence since in that light. However, if Jack was on the case too then it might at least be fair. He wasn't about to convict an innocent man. Funnily enough, the possibility of Patrick being guilty didn't occur to her. If Sheelagh trusted him then that was good enough for her. Slowly, she returned to her seat, the plastic warming her bare legs.
'What was that all about?' Abi asked, dropping down into the lounger beside her. 'I thought you weren't going to answer it again.'
'I'm sorry, sweetheart,' she said. 'It was about someone at work, that's all. Sergeant Murphy,' she added, hopeful that the familiar name would quell Abi's ire a little. It did.
'Sheelagh?' she asked instantly. 'Is she okay?'
Sam couldn't help but smile at her daughter's concern for Sheelagh, so similar to her own. 'Her husband's been accused of a serious assault,' she said. 'Inspector Gold thought I'd want to know.'
Abi tugged her sunglasses from her forehead and folded them up. 'You've got a real soft spot for her, haven't you?' she questioned.
'Well, she did save your life,' Sam answered. 'I'll always be grateful to her for that.'
'Yeah, but it's more than that, isn't it?' Abi pressed.
'Are you sure you don't want to be a copper?' returned Sam.
Abi rolled her eyes. 'Mum, stop dodging the question.'
She chuckled and tilted the soles of her feet towards the sun. 'Sheelagh's a friend of mine, if that's what you want me to say.'
Reaching for her glass, Abi commented, 'You don't have friends usually.'
'No,' she admitted, 'but Sheelagh's different. She's really been there for me in the last few months. I couldn't tell you why, I honestly couldn't.'
'You care about her a lot,' replied Abi, watching her carefully.
Grimacing, Sam met her eye. 'Don't tell anyone, will you?'
'Inspector Gold's figured it out.' Abi grinned and poked her arm. 'Is it really that terrible that other people might?'
'You're enjoying this,' Sam pointed out.
'Course I am,' Abi retorted. 'First a friend to get you out of the house then we can work towards a boyfriend.'
Sam snorted and reached for her own drink. 'No chance.'
The rest of the holiday passed without incident. Abi's happiness revitalised them both and Sam felt the stresses of the last months drift away from her. She spent her time trying to truly unwind, more than a little drunk the entire time as she watched Abi enjoy herself. It was likely to be the last time she could persuade her daughter to actually come on holiday with her and she was determined to make the most of it, though her thoughts flicked back to Sun Hill a few times. She knew that Gina would've called back had anything drastic happened, but that didn't scratch the itch of interest she felt at Sheelagh's wellbeing. By the time they landed at a damp Heathrow she felt as though she and Abi were starting anew and she was raring to get back to work.
There was a message flashing on the answering machine when she dragged the suitcases through the door. Abi went straight upstairs to change so, out of breath, Sam pressed the button and leaned back against the wall.
'Samantha,' Gina said, 'I didn't ring your mobile because, honestly, I want to tell you this face-to-face. Come find me when you get back into work. It's worth it, I promise.'
That was much more cryptic and frivolous than she was used to from Inspector Gina Gold. She suppressed her urge to call her immediately, knowing that Gina would keep her word and only tell her whatever this was face-to-face tomorrow. So she contented herself with putting a few loads of washing in and doing a shop to keep them going for a few days. When she got back from the supermarket she found Abi crashed out on the sofa with a film flickering in the background.
Smiling, she kneeled down and kissed her forehead. Waking her up was always a nightmare so she just threw a blanket over her and kept the noise down for the rest of the night. Getting back to school would be a shock to the system for her tomorrow, almost as much as getting back to the station was going to be for Sam.
She bought flowers to brighten up her office and a newspaper on the way to work the next morning, meaning that she was laden down as she climbed the stairs up to CID. As she reached the top she saw Eva standing there watching Cathy Bradford's retreating back.
'Morning, Eva,' she said.
'Nice tan, Guv,' she replied as they walked into CID together. 'I take it the holiday was a success.'
'Yes,' Sam said with a smile, 'it was great, thanks. But as soon as I walk back into this place...'
'A distant memory,' Eva supplied.
'Yes. So what's been going on?' she asked as they walked into her office and she caught sight of her flashing answer phone. 'Any major problems while I've been away or are all these messages just for me?'
As she rounded the desk and deposited her stuff, Eva answered, 'No, there's nothing urgent, Guv. There's a couple of cases you need to review. Oh, and Reg on a runaway bus,' she added.
Sam looked up. 'What?'
'Welcome back,' Eva said and Sam chuckled. Then she went on, 'There is one more thing. Some journalist is in today, doing a piece on Matt Boyden.'
'Oh, good,' Sam replied. 'At least I know who to avoid because anything I'd say wouldn't be printable.' The phone rang as Eva retreated and she felt the familiar slither of delight at her job as she picked it up: 'DI Nixon.'
It was a rape allegation on campus that needed passing on to CSU. It was fortunate that today DC Ramani de Costa, a sex crimes expert, was joining them. It was just the kind of thing to throw in her direction, though Sam felt slightly bad about not letting her sit down first. She went to see June to pass the case on, already well back into the swing of Sun Hill life.
As she turned to leave, June called, 'How was your holiday?'
She glanced over her shoulder and quipped, 'What holiday?'
Now that she was out of CID she decided to seek out Gina and catch up on what had happened with Sheelagh while she had a chance. She found her stood in her office rifling through some paperwork.
'What happened?' Sam questioned, closing the door behind her.
Gina sank into her chair. 'Good holiday?'
'Never mind that,' she said. 'What happened?
'Do you want the short version or the long one?' When Sam threw her a look she held up a hand. 'Fair enough. Sit down.'
As she did so, she asked, 'Was Patrick Murphy released?'
'We caught the guy, yeah,' Gina answered. 'Or, rather, Sheelagh and Des did.'
'Des?!' Sam repeated, unease bubbling in her stomach. 'Start at the beginning.'
'Obviously,' Gina began, 'I've had most of this second-hand from Sheelagh and Jack. From what I understand, that conviction I told you about was an assault against a female passenger who refused to pay. That was a red rag to a bull with Debbie.'
'I bet,' Sam murmured.
'Well, a saint would've been wound up by her attitude. Sheelagh agreed to talk to her and Jack informally about Patrick's personality and what not, but Debbie took the opportunity to grill her about their sex life.'
Sam rolled her eyes. 'Of course she did.'
'The next thing I know,' Gina continued, 'is Sheelagh's steaming through that door telling me she's just slapped Debbie.'
'Excuse me?!' Sam demanded, sitting up in her chair.
'Mmm,' replied Gina with a smile, 'and there was me worried about what you might say to Debbie in the heat of the moment.'
'She actually slapped her?' questioned Sam. 'In the face?'
'There's no need to look quite so proud,' Gina pointed out.
'What, like you do?' she retorted. 'Isn't that why you wanted to tell me face-to-face?'
Gina shrugged, lips twitching. 'Fair point. I think Debbie was all for pressing charges, but someone talked her out of it. Anyway, Sheelagh took Patrick home from what I could gather then went looking for something that might prove his innocence. She located his wallet, but the kid who found it suggested Patrick had been the one who dumped it, putting him right back in the frame. And you know what Sheelagh did?'
'Took it to Debbie,' Sam answered without hesitation.
'Right,' Gina said. 'Not long after that she asked me for permission to go home, but she didn't quite get there. The next I hear, Des Taviner's reporting that they've found the stolen cab but Sheelagh's been abducted in it.'
Sam's smile slipped from her face. 'What happened?'
'She managed to text Des her location,' answered Gina. 'I was coordinating from CAD. She got away from the fella, Des tracked her down and they made the arrest together.'
Settling back in her chair, Sam muttered, 'Why Des?'
Gina clasped her hands together. 'Your guess is as good as mine. I told her if she thinks of listening to him again then she's lost her marbles.'
'Yeah,' said Sam softly then she cleared her throat. 'But she's okay?'
'Oh, yeah, yeah, everything's back to normal,' Gina replied. 'Patrick's been cleared, the real culprit's in custody and Debbie McAllister got a slap in the face. Busy week.'
Sam tried to smile, though she couldn't quite manage it.
'What?' Gina questioned.
'Nothing,' she said, standing. 'Thanks for filling me in. And thanks for the heads-up actually, I really appreciate it. I should get back upstairs, I've got a mountain of messages to work through.'
Gina followed her to the door. 'Are you all right?'
'Course,' she replied.
Although she looked unconvinced, Gina let her go without another word. Instead of heading upstairs, though, Sam made a beeline for the bathroom. Her phone rang as she entered but she rejected the call and put it down on the sink. She didn't quite know why, but she wasn't ready to face her colleagues yet.
It was that combination again – Sheelagh and Des in the same sentence. It unsettled her, though she was hard pressed to pinpoint why. She could hardly claim she was worried about Sheelagh getting hurt when it seemed that Des had helped save her life. Then again, how had Sheelagh got it into her head to go investigating with Des Taviner alone at night? That was, as Gina said, the mark of someone who'd lost her marbles. Or, at least, Sheelagh had been desperate for support. Perhaps if Sam had been here, Sheelagh might've turned to her and not Des. Then again, she hadn't yet, had she? There was nothing to say she would. For some reason, that irritated Sam intensely. Sighing, she splashed her face with cool water and dabbed it dry.
'You look far too preoccupied to say you've only been back at work for half an hour,' a voice from the doorway said.
Sam jumped then tried to paste a smile onto her face as she turned. 'Not preoccupied, just thinking.'
'About what?' Sheelagh asked.
'About you, as it happens,' Sam replied before she thought too much about it. She was almost gratified to see a blush appear on Sheelagh's face, though she realised an instant afterwards that she sounded like she did when she indulged in power-games with the likes of Phil and modified her tone. 'Listen,' she went on, crossing her arms, 'Gina called me while I was away to fill me in on what was going on. I wanted to do what I could from over there but she warned me off wading in, she thought I might make things worse for you by interfering.'
A strange look came over Sheelagh's face. 'Really?'
Now it was Sam's turn to flush and she needlessly washed her hands. 'By the sound of it, you didn't need my help.'
'Well, I wouldn't want you getting into trouble on my account,' Sheelagh answered.
'Are you okay?' Sam questioned as she reached for a paper towel. 'Is everything sorted?'
Sheelagh nodded. 'We're getting back to normal.'
'Good,' she said, 'I'm glad. Speaking of which,' she went on in a rush, 'I should actually get some work done this morning. I'll see you.'
Without another word, she slipped past Sheelagh and hurried up towards CID. She was half-irritated, half-embarrassed, though she really hadn't a clue why. It was probably just the fact that her sincere urge to be a good friend to Sheelagh hadn't been necessary after all.
When she walked back into CID the first person she caught sight of was Debbie McAllister. Immediately, her irritation solidified and she swept forward feeling much surer of herself.
Perching on the edge of her desk, she asked, 'Everything all right, Debbie?'
Debbie raised her head, looking like she'd swallowed a lemon. 'Morning, Guv. Good holiday?'
'Not bad. I've just been catching up on the gossip. Well?' she pressed.
'Well what?' Debbie retorted.
'Everything all right?' she repeated. 'Not investigating any of your colleagues or their families so far this morning? I wondered if you were going for the set. I take it your face has recovered.'
Clearing her throat, Debbie muttered, 'If you mean Sheelagh, it was just a slap.'
'Mmm,' Sam replied with an acidic smile, 'so I heard.'
'Look, all I did was follow the evidence,' snapped Debbie. 'You would've done the same in my shoes.'
Sam crossed her arms. 'There's a difference between following evidence and actively hoping that you get to arrest a colleague's husband. Or a colleague, for that matter. Taking pleasure in it, Debbie – that's what people have a problem with. It's almost like you want everyone to be guilty of something.'
'Of course I don't,' Debbie answered. 'If I didn't do my job –'
'I'd pull you up on it,' Sam interrupted. 'Tricky line, isn't it? Except most of your colleagues seem to walk it without difficulty. Sometimes you have to interview colleagues or their husbands. It's complex, but we manage it. You don't learn from your mistakes, do you?'
'And you do?' Debbie demanded, sitting up straighter. 'You were questioned over Matt Boyden's murder, weren't you?'
'Yes, I was,' returned Sam. 'And you know what I've got in common with Patrick Murphy and Brandon Kane? The officers so intent on believing us guilty were wrong. Get into the habit of hoping you'll be wrong or your colleagues'll trust you less than they already do. Now,' she added, sliding off the desk, 'if I could have your up-to-date reports on my desk by close of play I'd be grateful. I've got a catch-up with the DCI tomorrow.'
Leaving Debbie gaping at her, she walked into her office. She sat down at her desk and wondered where to start. Then, remembering the call she'd rejected in the bathroom, she reached for her phone, but it wasn't there.
'Looking for this?'
She glanced to the doorway, finding Sheelagh leaning against the frame with her phone held up. She must've left it behind in her mad dash from the bathroom. Standing, she rounded the desk and peered over Sheelagh's shoulder, but Debbie had disappeared. Then Sheelagh stepped inside and nudged the door shut, a small smile on her face.
'I'm not quite with it yet,' Sam admitted, taking the phone.
'Oh, I'd say you're on form,' replied Sheelagh as she leaned back against the door. 'I can see why Gina thought it best to keep you out of the investigation.'
Sam winced. 'How much of that did you hear?'
'Enough,' Sheelagh said. 'You didn't have to do that.'
Shrugging, she muttered, 'Debbie needs to learn that she can't go trampling over her colleagues and expect to get away with it.'
'Does she?' asked Sheelagh softly.
Reluctantly, Sam met her eye. 'Sorry if I was out of line. It just needed to be said.'
There was a moment of silence then Sheelagh leaned forward and kissed her cheek before saying, 'I should get back to work.'
'Yeah,' Sam murmured, 'you should.'
With one more smile, Sheelagh slipped out of the office. Slowly, Sam returned to her seat, sitting down and taking a long breath. The answer phone still flashed with numerous messages and her email was full to bursting. She turned her attention to all that and found herself completely immersed. Only when there was a knock on the door a little while later did her concentration break.
'Yes, Eva?' she questioned, dropping her pen instantly at the perturbed expression on her face. 'Is there a problem?'
Eva glanced back into the office and lowered her voice. 'Are you all right, Guv?'
She stared at her. 'What do you mean?'
'Well, you're, erm, you're humming, Guv,' Eva replied.
Looking beyond the door, she saw several heads turned in her direction. 'Everything's fine, Eva.'
'Sure?'
'Nothing to worry about,' she said with a grin. 'Though maybe you should shut the door on your way out, keep the noise down.'
Eva smiled. 'Will do.'
As the door clicked closed, Sam leaned back in her chair. Caught humming at work by one of her DCs – that was a new one. She hadn't even realised she was doing it. Then again, everyone out there had probably heard about her little altercation with Debbie earlier and had put it down to that or the holiday afterglow. Maybe that was what it was. Focusing back on her paperwork, she made a conscious effort not to hum, although she caught herself at it again not ten minutes later.
